Zbud, a Polish manufacturer of cranes and lifting equipment, has joined the exclusive group of domestic firms vying for contracts in the construction of Poland’s first nuclear power plant. The company is investing over PLN 47 million to upgrade its facilities and meet stringent American quality standards, positioning itself as a potential supplier of critical reactor and cask cranes for the AP1000 project in Choczewo.
In April 2026, Zbud became the seventh member of the so-called „Big Seven” – Polish companies identified by Westinghouse as potential suppliers for the nuclear island. The firm, based in Dąbrowa Tarnowska in Małopolska, already provides equipment for power plants in Kozienice, Turów, Opole, and Pątnów, but the nuclear sector demands a fundamentally different approach. Zbud aims to deliver two specialized cranes: a Polar Crane for reactor assembly and fuel handling, and a Cask Crane for transporting spent fuel containers.
The road to becoming an official nuclear supplier is arduous. Currently, Zbud is in the first phase of qualifying, implementing a quality assurance program compliant with the American NQA-1 standard. The company’s vice-president Andrzej Wilk says the initial phase is manageable, but greater challenges lie ahead.
A costly but necessary certification
– A bigger challenge will be phases two and three, which involve making a test mockup. We are not afraid of the technical execution – we have offshore experience. The main difficulty is the scope of required documentation to meet NQA-1 and the shortage of certified nuclear auditors in Poland – Wilk explains. Phase two focuses on models and drawings, while phase three culminates in a physical mockup of the final product. Westinghouse provides the crane designs under a Build-to-Print formula, meaning Zbud must produce exactly according to the supplied documentation.
– Both the polar crane and the cask crane are Build-to-Print projects. American legal requirements apply, and the NQA-1 standard is the way to create a quality system meeting those criteria, which we are currently implementing with Zbud – says Tymoteusz Michaś, supplier development engineer at Westinghouse. The project is partly funded by Westinghouse, which covers the time of staff preparing Zbud for certification. However, the Polish firm will bear the cost of expanding its plant on its own.
Betting on a nuclear future
Between 2025 and 2027, Zbud plans to invest over PLN 47 million, including PLN 36 million for two new halls: a production hall (PLN 15.5 million) and an assembly hall (PLN 20.6 million). This investment carries risk because none of the Polish companies have guaranteed contracts yet. Westinghouse’s chief procurement manager Karina Cierocka acknowledges the uncertainty.
– There is always a risk of failure. But we decided to develop this supplier and invest resources to minimize it. This supplier is not only for the Polish project – we have other projects in Europe and would like Polish firms to deliver solutions to other markets too – Cierocka says. Zbud’s vice-president adds that obtaining NQA-1 will also open doors to the European ISO 19443 standard, enabling cooperation with American, European, and Korean partners.
For Zbud, nuclear energy represents a new, highly specialized branch complementing its core business of near-transport equipment. Contracts for crane production can span two years, offering stable, long-term income. – The long-term risk is that we might not pass final qualification, but we are doing everything we can to succeed – Wilk notes. The key engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for the power plant is expected to be negotiated by the end of 2026, after which actual orders will be placed. Until then, Zbud and its peers continue preparing for the ultimate test.
Źródło: wnp.pl, Fot. PTWP
